5/31/13

Get your virtual taste buds ready for this little gem of a birthday party! Daphne is turning two and to celebrate, Mom Alex- owner and photographer of Peppermint Plum Photography, designed a scrumptious soiree that her precious Daphne will never forget! Alex explains, "My little girl loves "no nuts", as she likes to call them. Any chance she gets, she will repeat the word over and over again in hopes that one will magically appear." When it came time to decide on a theme, there was no question that "Daphne's Donut Shop" would be the winner! Complete with a Crepe Bar with all the trimmings and Daphne's Donut Bar which allowed guests to decorate their own donuts with yummy toppings of their choosing. Alex is a mommy of all trades! She not only designed, organized and photographed Daphne's birthday party, she also designed her adorable invitations that matched the magical donut theme perfectly. Visit Alex's Etsy Shop: Love, Peppermint Plum to see her fantastic invitation collection.

5/28/13

While visiting my dearest friend and college room-mate Haeley Burch in Houston Texas a few weeks ago, our conversation turned to Fawn Over Baby and my future plans regarding content. As a suggestion, Haeley began telling me an amazing story about a former co-worker of hers, Jennifer Welker. A former registered nurse in the neonatal ICU in Houston Texas, Jennifer is now the designer and owner of the exquisite custom jewelry collection, Golden Thread.

Initially, Jennifer began creating jewelry as a therapeutic outlet after spending her days/nights caring for ill babies at Children's Memorial Hermann. Just for fun, she would make these custom necklaces for friends and soon began receiving requests to sell as gifts, eventually offering them for purchase through her friend's local boutique. Her jewelry became a big hit in the local market and after her clever idea of sending a sample to two of her favorite style icons, her jewelry soon caught the eye of the worldwide market. While knowing that the Middleton sisters are fans of dainty gold jewelry, Jennifer took a leap of faith and decided to send one of her engraved necklaces to each Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge and Pippa Middleton. Although Buckingham Palace sent Kate's necklace back - as they are not allowed to accept gifts from people they do not know, Pippa was seen wearing her necklace proudly - retailing for $680.00!
Soon after, the whole world took notice. Instyle Magazine included Pippa wearing her engraved necklace in their "What's Now" section as well as People's Style Watch magazine requested Jennifer to send over a discounted necklace for their "holiday gift guide", which featured a single gold block letter retailing for $40.00. Then the Today Show called and requested a super discounted piece for their "steals and deals" segment - featuring a large gold disc necklace retailing for $47.00. The recognition does not stop there, to see more Golden Thread Ravs, visit Golden Thread's "As Seen In" section for more highlights. To say that her story is an inspirational one is an understatement. So many of us have a talent or idea that is just waiting to be discovered, we just have to believe in ourselves enough to share our gift with the world.

If you are looking for that perfect gift for a birthday, wedding, graduation or for the sweetest of occasions, a "push present" (for a mother following delivery), Golden Thread's custom designs range from $40-$1000. Visit their "Create Your Own" category, where you are able to choose your preferred necklace length, charm design, engrave design as well as add diamonds or other precious stones for that added touch of sparkle. Be sure to also check out her beautiful new Rose Gold Collection that will blow you away!

**I would like to thank Jennifer Welker for allowing me to share not only her STUNNING pieces, also her wonderful and inspirational story that will hopefully help other moms/ladies out there to take that leap of faith and share their clever ideas and wonderful talent with the world :)

5/22/13

When it came time to decorate McKenzie's nursery, I knew I wanted to display her name in a fun way. I have her twine-wrapped initials hanging from her armoire, however, I wanted her entire name displayed as well. When in a creative crunch or in doubt, turn to Martha Stewart right? Well, that's what I did and I came across Martha's "Baby Wooden Block Tutorial Video" with Ashley Steele. An idea that I've seen all over Pinterest just never thought of incorporating as nursery decor. After watching the video, I was so excited to get started! Ashley made it look so easy without extensive instructions and with very few materials needed. That's my kind of DIY! In a few hours (two 30-minute to an hour of dry time), McKenzie's name beautifully graced her wall shelf above her changing table. Although I made these blocks before Fawn Over Baby was born, I wanted to share a quick tutorial using one block to demonstrate the steps I took to create McKenzie's. I tend to stage my craft set up indoors, however, Alaska does not have a lot of beautiful sunny days like this, so Kenzie and I set up shop outside. My apologies for the bright photos :)

Perfect Day For A DIY Picnic!

I try to make Kenzie feel "involved" by letting her look at the pretty papers and play with the block for a bit :)

Materials Needed

*1.5 or 2 square inch wooden blocks (can be purchased at Michaels or cut from one piece of wood from local hardware store)

*Decorative Paper (6 designs to cover each side of block. Purchased at Michaels)

*Letters, Numbers and Embellishments (Purchased at Michaels)

1 1/2 square inch block - purchased at Michaels

Lightly sand entire block - sides and edges to prepare for Mod Podge or Paint if you choose to have a color base

Trace block on the backside of each sheet of patterned paper

Don't mind Kenzie's drool on the corners, lol!

Cut out your square from all sheets of patterned paper.

Make sure you have 6 square cutouts. I decided to double up on the pretty glitter design :)

Lightly paint Mod Podge on one side of block, I would work with one side at a time(makes less of a mess).
If you choose to have a color base, paint color on first, let dry then layer on Mod Podge.

Add one of your cutouts to one side first, then move on to additional sides

Press and hold for a bit so that entire paper is adhered

After all sides are completely pressed, allow to dry for an hour or so - I chose to wait overnight

Once dry, lightly sand edges to create a "worn" look, allowing a little of the wood to show through.

Press letter or embellishment (you may use a light layer of mod podge to glue)

Lightly layer on another coat of Mod Podge over entire block to seal all sides and let dry over night.

Now it's time to show them off!!...I mean wrap up as a gift or display as decor :)

Please Note: Mod Podge is an acrylic, water based and non-toxic product, it is okay for your baby to handle. However, I wouldn't recommend allowing your baby to keep these wooden blocks in their mouth for an extended period of time as Mod Podge is not food safe.

Portrait Photography today is so wonderfully different than what it used to be and oh how I'm enjoying all of it's splendor! Instead of a blue background with a posed subject, photographers are capturing their clients in motion and/or in a more natural setting. Creativity incorporated into photo sessions is on the rise and it is a wonderful way to enhance a clients personal style. When I stumbled upon this photo session by gifted Kasia Photography, I instantly wanted to see more. The crisp and clean feel of her beautiful capture of baby Annie are so refreshing and would brighten up anyone's day. After spotting a pair of baby boots from Zara, Kasia used them as her "anchor point" to create a minimalist styled baby shoot. She knew she wanted to play on the simplicity of the color and design of the adorable boots and decided on an organic and fresh theme. After brainstorming backdrop ideas and fun locations, she decided to not overwhelm the shoot with props and colors and went with just a few basic accesorries. With a few cardboard cloud cut-outs, a teal chair and a vintage camera, baby Annie's leniently polished styled photo session was born. Prepare to indulge your simplistic side and enjoy this illuminating capture of a precious baby girl.

You may also view these delightful photos and Kasia's other wonderful photo session publications, on issuue magazine.

****Note****

Many photos posted are not mine. If you see a photo of yours without credit, please let me know and I will be glad to add your name. If you wish for me to remove your photos, I will be happy to do so. Thank you :)